Hello!

bradartigue

True Classic
Hello.

I appear to be taking a turn to the other side of classic FIATs and have identified an X1/9 to purchase. Whether that car works out or not I'll be joining in the crazy in the next few months.

I actually thought I had an account here....and may have years ago....but here it goes. I'm Brad Artigue, I live in Atlanta, and have primarily centered on the 124 Spider - the original one - written a couple of things on them and so on. I'm looking forward to learning the X1/9, or as Carl (I think) noted, a different kind of fun.
 
Welcome Brad!

I have often come across information posted by you - carb data and so on. You will be a valuable addition to the forum!

I'm guessing you're going to forget all about front-engine Fiats when you've had a few good drives in an X.

Pete
 
Welcome back Brad

Welcome back Brad. You probably had an account on Xweb 1.0 and we moved here to Xweb 2.0 back in 2009 or so.

I have definitely seen your Fiat content here and there over the years. I was reading your carb related stuff just a couple months ago as I worked thru putting a DFEV into my 124 Special to replace the failing DHSA. I see that www.artigue.com is not up right now. Is it still suffering from the lightning strike issues you mentioned months ago?

I hope you find an X you are happy with. Welcome to the addiction. :)
 
The fiat stuff is on fiat.artigue.com

Also note we posted everything on the forum * mirafiori.com - which has been replaced with a new forum package. Several carb and wiring diagrams applicable to the X1/9 on both.
 
Welcome back to XWeb and congrats on an excellent rollout of the new Mira. :clap:

Looking forward to seeing your purchase and hearing about the process of getting it.

We all love a good story.
 
Welcome to the dark side.

I also started on Mira with a 124 spider. Bought my first (yes first, there has been more) X1/9 after 25 years of spider ownership about 12 years ago. Sold my spider about five years ago after over 30 years ownership because the dark side has me.

X1/9s are like Lays potato chips, you can not stop at just one.
 
Brad, be careful of these guys, they are just as suspect as the MIRA clowns and some like me are crossdressers and fool around on both forums.

carl
a nice 73 spider
some day will be nice 86X
 
George Ramos was kind enough to let me drive his 74 last night; what a riot. I've never made a car take a 90 degree turn and it just act like "meh, whatever dude..." Only added to the allure.
 
Welcome!

I want to personally welcome and encourage Brad to buy an X1/9 and join all of us in this great X1/9 community. Brad I really do hope that you do buy an X1/9 and fall in love with these cars like the rest of us here. With your great knowledge and support for the Fiat 124/2000 Spider community you couldn't be a better supporter for us here in the X1/9 community.

I want to personally make a shameless plug for Bradley Artigue's new book called "Maintaining The Italian Roadster". I recently purchased my hard copy edition of this book and I absolutely love it. It is a great book, well written and full of wonderful and valuable information. Brad, if I could buy and auto graphed version of your book please let me know. Just name your price!

Let us know how you make out with your X1/9 purchase. Just be warned, you will end up buying more than just one. :)

George
 
Jen will be thrilled with the news that there will be multiples.

Oh the decision has been made to buy one, I have to figure out which one. Trying to figure out if I need A/C, if the A/C was worth a darn to begin with (the Spider one was a joke but did help on humid days). For cars I wouldn't drive unless the weather was perfect and the top was off, A/C might just be unimportant.

As to the plug on the book, there is a discount code for the softcover: 9PFMVA3U but it only works on https://www.createspace.com/6107730
and thanks for the nice plug. I guess if I buy an X I'll be on the hook for another one?

I did pull up my wiring diagram stencils in Visio on the flight home from Portland to Atlanta today and a few X diagrams just to see. When I did the Spider ones I was flying internationally every few weeks and produced them during 7 hours of 9 hour flights. Nowadays the flights are slightly shorter, so maybe 0.5 diagrams per flight?

Maybe FIAT changed things less during X production. The Spider it was like a yearly ritual to do things like invert the fuse order. The wiring barely ever changed, but the colors and connection points kept flopping around.
 
I'm Brad Artigue, I live in Atlanta, and have primarily centered on the 124 Spider - the original one - written a couple of things on them and so on..

"Written a couple of things on them"? I didn't know you Georgia guys were so into understatement :)

And seriously, kidding aside... welcome! I've linked to your Fiat service letters and Weber carb diagrams many times over the years. You beat me to that stash of service letters by about fifteen minutes, but that's a good thing because I probably never would have gotten around to scanning and posting them.
 
First off, I want to add my welcome. GREAT to see you on Xweb! Sorry to have missed meeting you in person last Wednesday, I got redirected by work to Austin for a short trip. Anyways...

Trying to figure out if I need A/C, if the A/C was worth a darn to begin with (the Spider one was a joke but did help on humid days). For cars I wouldn't drive unless the weather was perfect and the top was off, A/C might just be unimportant.

Just a different way of looking at it... If you are always driving on nice days with the top off, you are also driving without shade. I think AC would be nice. I say, "I think" because while I do drive with the top off whenever it's not raining, none of my cars have working AC. But there have been days where I wish they did. I will be adding AC on at least one of my restoration projects.

Anyway, welcome, and glad to see you here. Let me know if I can be of any assistance in helping you find your X :)
 
Welcome. I've dabbled in the "dark side" with SOHC Fiats on & off. While my #1 affinity remains with 124 Coupes, I can't help but recognize the shear brilliance of the X1/9. When you think of when the car was designed, what population/price range for which it was marketed.....it's a helluva hit. My experience also with a lot of beater/parts Fiats has led me to believe a bad X19 may be a bigger ball of "trouble" than an equally bad 124, but I've learned (and I'm relearning & learning more lately) that the same general recipe for proper care and maintenance you already know so well applies and the fun unfolds exponentially. Good luck and I will enjoy watching your experience on this.


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... Trying to figure out if I need A/C, if the A/C was worth a darn to begin with (the Spider one was a joke but did help on humid days). For cars I wouldn't drive unless the weather was perfect and the top was off, A/C might just be unimportant....

my '81, daily driver I would like A/C, when it's hot it's hot, top on or off doesn't matter much (sometimes worse to have full sun even with lot's of air, if it's hot air it doesn't help much)
Just like any convertible I suppose.
I often wish I had A/C.
If you only drive it on "perfect" days, you'll not be driving much, then what's the point? I drove mine for a few years everyday unless it was a flat out blizzard.
The last couple years I've bedded it down for the bulk of nasty winter, still it's out into December and back out in March.
August hot and humid will cook you, in Georgia, that's probably 1/2 the year. I'm under the impression the A/C on these worked well when all in order, not easy to find one "in order" these days, nor cheap to put one "in order",
A/C makes working on everything else more of a PITA too I've gathered.
 
With any old car you have to jump in and say "I'm in for it." I don't care what you buy, it's old, it is going to have issues. Unless the truly rare car comes up with perfect stewardship...they're just not made to last 30 years, 40 years, etc...

Perhaps the X will prove me wrong, but I've worked on some cars that all classic car owners agree are truly hell, like the Porsche 928. It may actually be the sole example of classic car, owner-maintenance hell, but yet it was do-able.
 
Welcome Brad...

Welcome Brad. Brad for those of you who don't know wrote a few Fiat Spider and L-Jet manuals a while ago, very helpful over the years like when looking up the Temp Sensor II resistance values....

He even created a special edition for one of our FEN Tech Sessions on Fuel Injection that I curated and hosted in Olympia.

Anyway he knows his way around Spiders and L-Jet so I'm sure he'll be an asset to our group of crazies. Welcome Brad!
 
Another Atlantan

Brad - Glad to see your post. I'm a new '81 X1/9 owner in Atlanta (near Chastain Park), but without the benefit of your reputation and experience as other replies have already said. Good luck with the purchase!

Jason
 
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